Precipitation resistant ridge vent

ABSTRACT

A precipitation resistant ventilator for a structure enclosing an interior space. The ventilator encloses a space that is in communication with the structure interior space. A thin sheet of air permeable water resistant material is disposed within the ventilator interior. The thin sheet of air permeable water resistant material forms a barrier that excludes the entry of precipitation and other foreign matter into the roof structure while still allowing air exchange.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of pending U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/826,651, filed Nov. 30, 2005, which is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/636,178, filed Aug. 7, 2003, andissued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,913,530, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/209,851, filed Jul. 31, 2002, and issuedas U.S. Pat. No. 6,623,354, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/651,071 filed Aug. 30, 2000 and issued as U.S.Pat. No. 6,450,882.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to roof ventilators folded from a blank ofcorrugated plastic sheet material having a top panel and two ventpanels. More particularly, it relates to a roof vent of corrugatedconstruction including an internal filtering material to excludeprecipitation, debris and vermin from entry into the vented roof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is a common practice in the construction of structures to ventilategable roofs by providing a vent along the roof ridge. Ventilationapertures are formed in the construction process by leaving or cuttingan open slot along the ridge through the sheathing material covering theroof. Heated air rises and escapes at the ridge taking with it moisturethat may have accumulated within the roof. The flow of wind over theridge of the roof assists in the extraction of moisture and heated airby creating a zone of relatively reduce pressure as it crosses theridge. Soffit vents enable the entry of fresh exterior air into the roofto replace air that has left through the ridge vent. Soffit vents areopenings in the soffit material covering the undersides of theoverhanging eaves of the roof.

Ideally, a ventilated roof provides for an unrestricted outflow of airthrough the ridge vent and inflow through the soffit vents. However,without protection of the ventilating openings, wind blownprecipitation, debris and insects enter the roof and encourage damage tothe structure through mildew, rot and infestation. A ventilated cap istherefore placed over the open slot in the ridge and attached to theroof along each side.

Therefore, many types of vent caps have been developed in an effort toprovide free flow of air while excluding rain, snow and insects.Louvers, baffles and screens have been standard features of roof ventsfor decades.

Snow, in particular, is a great concern. It has a small particle sizeand is lightweight. Wind can carry snow upward and into roof ventsreadily. Snow particles may bypass louvers and deflectors that preventthe entry of most rain. As much as two feet of wind driven snow has beenreported to have passed through roof vents and accumulated inside roofstructures.

A number of ridge vent caps employ filtering material to restrict theentry of precipitation and foreign matter. Filtering materials includeporous foams and fibrous materials. Examples of the use of porous foamsinclude U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,059 issued to Sells, U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,521issued to Coulton et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,876,950 issued to Rudeen.Both closed cell foams and open cell foams have been utilized. Open cellfoams have the benefit of allowing greater airflow but tend to absorb asubstantial amount of water. Closed cell foams absorb little water butrestrict airflow to a greater degree. Foam products, in general, tend todeteriorate with age and exposure to the elements.

Fibrous materials enjoy wider use as roof vent filters. Examples includeU.S. Pat. No. 5,902,432 issued to Coulton et al., U.S. Pat. No.5,830,059 issued to Sells, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,561,953, 5,425,672,5,352,154, 5,167,579 all issued to Rotter. These patents and othersdisclose the use of mats of randomly aligned synthetic fibers to excludevermin and the elements from roof vents. The Rotter patents discloseroof vents made entirely from mats of randomly aligned synthetic fibers.Fiber mats may suffer from compression, for example, under a snow load,and add expense and complexity to the construction of roof vents.

Another approach to preventing the entry of precipitation and foreignmatter into vents is to employ check valves structured to close at apredetermined wind speed so as to stop the inflow of air andprecipitation. Check valves have moving parts and are prone to thepossibility of wear and blockage and when they operate ventilation isrestricted. They also complicate the manufacturing process. U.S. Pat.No. 5,803,805 to Sells discloses a check valve ridge vent.

In recent years the use of corrugated plastic sheet materials tomanufacture roof vents has presented to the marketplace a variety ofinexpensive, strong, durable ridge vents which may be applied insections or as a continuous roll. Ridge vents of this type are typicallyapplied along the peak of a roof and covered by a row of shingles. Theyare thus referred to as “shingle over roof vents.” Some have sufficientstructural integrity such that they can be fastened to the roof with apneumatic nail gun without crushing the vent.

Examples of corrugated plastic ridge vents include U.S. Pat. No.5,651,734 issued to Morris, U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,995 to Morris, Kasnerand Stoll and U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,817 to Morris, Gosz and Stoll whichare incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.

Wind deflectors are sometimes installed along with the vent in order torestrict the entry of rain and snow into the vent. The installation ofwind deflectors requires an additional step in the installation processwith an attendant increase in time and expense.

The applicant is aware of a single example of a corrugated ridge ventemploying a filtering material to exclude precipitation and the like.U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,834 issued to Sells discloses the use of a flexible,air permeable, moisture repelling, woven or nonwoven fabric covering theouter side of the vent passages to resist the penetration of moistureinto the vent passages. The fabric filter is held in place by aperforated metal flashing attached either to the roof or to the vent.

Considerable complexity is added to the manufacturing process in orderto incorporate the flashing into the vent. The presence of a rigid orsemi rigid flashing may also prevent or complicate the rolling of thevent for transport and reduce ease of application. Additionally, thefiltering fabric is exposed to the elements. Sun and wind may accelerateits deterioration.

It would be desirable to produce a ridge vent of folded corrugatedplastic construction that effectively excludes wind blown precipitationand other foreign matter. The process of manufacturing the ridge ventshould be as simple as possible. It would be preferable for such a ridgevent to require no flashing to support the filtering material. The ridgevent would ideally be possible to produce either in a continuous roll orin discrete sections. It would be preferable that filtering material beprotected from exposure to the elements to maximize its life.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention largely solves the above problems by providing ashingle over ridge vent that effectively excludes the entry ofprecipitation and foreign matter into the roof space. The ridge vent issturdy, easily manufactured and readily installed. In addition, thefiltering material that excludes precipitation is protected from factorsthat speed its deterioration.

The ridge vent is constructed of corrugated weather resistant materialhaving a convoluted intermediate ply. Airflow passages in the convolutedlayer are linearly oriented generally perpendicular to the long axis ofthe ridge vent.

The material is cut and scored so that it may be folded to have a singletop panel extending its entire length. At either side of and below thetop panel a plurality of folds create a plurality of stacked layers ofthe corrugated material with a plurality of airflow passagestherethrough. A routed groove may extend the length of the bottom sideof the top panel of the ridge vent to facilitate bending the ridge ventto conform to different roof pitches and to provide an additional exitpath for air flowing out of the ridge vent.

A sheet of air permeable, water resistant, woven or nonwoven fabric orother membrane is applied to the bottom side of the vent. The filteringfabric is bonded to the corrugated material in the vicinity of the peakof the vent and on the bottom sides of the stacked, corrugated ventmaterial. When the ridge vent is applied to the roof ridge the filteringfabric forms a tent like structure such that any accumulated rainwaterdrains out through the bottommost layer of the stacked side ventportions of the ridge vent.

The enclosure of the filtering fabric inside the ridge vent protects thefabric from exposure to sunlight and other factors that encouragedeterioration.

The ridge vent may be produced in lengthy continuous rolls or discretesections for installation. Discrete sections of ridge vent may bestacked flat or folded then stacked for shipping and handling. Multiplesections may be butted together end to end to cover a lengthy ridgeapplication.

The vent material is unrolled or unfolded and disposed along the roofridge so as to straddle the precut slot in the roof sheathing. The ridgevent may then be secured to the roof ridge with fasteners such as nails.It may be caulked as necessary. An individual skilled in the art willappreciate that if a roof is substantially irregular such as acorrugated metal roof or a tiled roof that a resilient conformingmaterial may be placed beneath the ridge vent to provide a tight sealbetween the ridge vent and the roof. An end plug of resilient foam orother appropriate material may be inserted and secured in the end of theroof vent to close off the opening there. The ridge vent then may becovered with shingles nailed directly through the ridge vent into theroof sheathing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary elevated perspective view of a ridge vent inaccordance with the present invention being installed on a roof;

FIG. 2 is a side plan view of a three ply weatherproof material that maybe used in the construction of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side plan view of two layers of a three ply weatherproofmaterial that may be used in the construction of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side plan view of two layers of an alternate three plyweatherproof material that may be used in the construction of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is an end plan view of the ridge vent of FIG. 1 depicting afolding scheme for the hinge panels forming the lateral vents of thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 is an end plan view of an embodiment of the present invention asstored and shipped in a flat configuration;

FIG. 6 a is an end plan view of an alternate embodiment of the presentinvention as stored and shipped in a flat configuration;

FIG. 6 b is an end plan view of another alternate embodiment of thepresent invention as stored and shipped in a flat configuration;

FIG. 7 is an end sectional view an embodiment of the ridge ventinstalled on a roof ridge;

FIG. 7 a is an end sectional view an alternate embodiment of the ridgevent installed on a roof ridge; and

FIG. 8 is an end sectional view of an alternate embodiment of thepresent invention as installed on a shed roof abutting a verticalexterior wall.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 depicts the precipitation resistant ridge cap roof vent 10 beinginstalled on a roof 12. The roof depicted is a rafter roof, though theridge vent 10 may be installed on many other types of roofs to provideventilation. The roof 12 depicted includes rafters 14 secured to a ridgeboard 16. Rafters 14 support sheathing 18. Sheathing 18 may be ofplywood, oriented strand board, planks or other suitable materialsecured to rafters 14. Generally sheathing 18 is overlaid with tarredfelt paper 20 which is in turn overlaid with shingles 22, though otherroofing materials may be employed. A cutout slot 24 is provided alongthe ridge 26. Slot 24 may terminate some distance from the end 28 of theridge 26.

The ridge vent 10, as depicted in FIGS. 1, 5, 6, and 7, broadly includesa top panel 30, a plurality of vent panels 32 and filtering fabric 34.Top panel 30 presents a long axis 36 aligned generally parallel with theridge 26 of the roof 12 when ridge vent 10 is installed. Top panel 30and vent panels 32 are constructed of a weatherproof three ply material38 including a generally planar top ply 40, a generally planar bottomply 42 and an intermediate ply 44. The intermediate ply 44 defines amultiplicity of airflow passages 46 extending generally transversely tolong axis 36 and entirely across top panel 30 and vent panels 32. Plug47 may be inserted in the end of the ridge vent 10.

FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 depict several possible configurations of the three plymaterial 38. FIG. 2 depicts a three ply material 38 whose intermediateply is comprised of a series of cross walls 39 connecting the top ply 40to bottom ply 42 and defining a plurality of airflow passages 46therebetween. FIGS. 3 and 4 depict an intermediate ply 44 of one orseveral convoluted or fluted layers 48 defining a plurality of airflowpassages 46. FIGS. 3 and 4 also show how multiple layers of three plymaterial 38 may be stacked to provide many generally parallel airflowpassages 46 therethrough.

Top panel 30 also presents an exterior surface 50 and an interiorsurface 52. Interior surface 52 may include a routed groove 54 usuallyextending generally parallel to long axis 36. Routed groove 54 extendsthrough bottom ply 42 and into intermediate ply 44 defining inneropenings 56 of airflow passages 46. The outer edges 58 of top panel 30define the outer openings 60 of airflow passages 46.

Vent panels 32 are disposed under the outer edges 58 of top panel 30 ina stacked fashion. They contain a multiplicity of airflow passages 46oriented generally transverse to long axis 36. Vent panels 32 may beformed by scoring and folding a sheet of three ply material 38 asdepicted in FIG. 5. Vent panels 32 may then be secured to top panel 30by the use of adhesives or fasteners 62 such as staples.

Alternately, vent panels 32 may by cut separately and stacked beneaththe outer edges 58 of top panel 30 and secured together and to top panel30 with fasteners 62 or adhesive. Thus airflow passages 46 are formedextending from exterior edges 64 to interior edges 66 of vent panels 32.

Filtering fabric 34 is secured along the interior surface 52 of toppanel 30, preferably in the region of the routed groove 54, and on thebottom side 68 of the lowermost vent panel 32 extending the length ofthe ridge vent 10. Adhesives, fasteners, heat fusing or any othersuitable technique may secure filtering fabric 34 to the ridge vent 10.

Filtering fabric 34 may be of any thin, air permeable, water resistant,sheet material. Woven or nonwoven fabrics may be employed as well as airpermeable water resistant membranes that are not of fabric. Preferably,filtering fabric 34 allows passage of about 75 percent of the air thatwould flow were it not present. The filtering fabric 34 may be anonwoven spunbonded material of randomly arranged synthetic polymerfibers.

Referring to FIGS. 6 a and 7 a, in an alternate embodiment of ridge vent10 filtering fabric 34 may be applied directly over inner openings 56 ofairflow passages 46. Filtering fabric 34 may cover only interior edges64 of vent panels 32.

Alternately, as depicted in FIG. 6 b filtering fabric 34 may extend frombottom side 68 of vent panels 32, up over inner openings 56, acrossinterior surface 52 of top panel 30, down over inner openings 56 on theopposite side and onto bottom side 68 on the opposite side. Thefiltering fabric 34 may be secured to interior edges 64, bottom side 68of vent panels 32 and interior surface 52 of top panel 30 as required.

FIG. 8 depicts an alternate embodiment of the ridge vent 10 adapted foruse where it is desire to ventilate a shed style roof 70 in contact withan exterior wall 72. Shed roof vent 74 generally includes a generallyplanar top panel 76, vent panels 32 and filtering fabric 34. Planar toppanel 76 includes flange panel 78 extending along its length. Ventpanels 32 are disposed beneath top panel 76 and are stacked and securedin a similar fashion to ridge vent 10. Filtering fabric 34 is attachedalong the bottom side 68 of the lowermost vent panel 32 and to planartop panel 76 on or near flange panel 78. Filtering fabric 34 may also beattached to cover the interior edges 66 of vent panels 32 alone.Fasteners, adhesives, heat fusing or other suitable techniques maysecure filtering fabric 34 to planar top panel 76 and vent panel 32.Flashing 80 may overlie the shed roof vent 74.

Referring to FIG. 1, in operation, ridge vent 10 is applied to the ridge26 of a roof 12 over a previously made cutout 24 extending the length ofthe ridge 26 except for a small portion left uncut at each end of theroof 12. The cutout 24 may be larger than a cutout that would be usedwith a non-filtering ridge vent in order to compensate for therestriction of airflow caused by the filtering fabric 34. The ridge vent10 is unrolled or unfolded if it is received packaged in either of theseforms. The roof vent 10 is disposed so that the routed groove 54 isgenerally centered over the cutout 24 and the vent panels 32 aregenerally parallel to the shingles 22 or other roof surface. It will beappreciated by those skilled in the art that a resilient or conformingpiece of material may be placed between the ridge vent 10 and the roof12 to fill in any gaps that may be present due to any substantialirregularities in the roof structure. This may be helpful in the case ofa corrugated metal or tiled roof.

Once in place, the ridge vent 12 may be secured to the roof 12 byfasteners such as nails or by adhesives. Nails may be applied directlythrough top panel 30 where it overlies vent panels 32 and into roofsheathing 18. A ridgeline (not shown) of shingles 22 may be applieddirectly over ridge vent 10.

As can be seen in FIGS. 1, and 7, when the ridge vent is installed thefiltering fabric 34 forms a tent like structure. Wind blownprecipitation such as rain or snow may be carried into the interior ofthe ridge vent 10 through airflow passages 46 but it is stopped fromtraveling further by the water resistant filtering fabric 34 while airmay still pass. Liquid rain or melted snow that accumulates on top ofthe filtering fabric 34 drains from the ridge vent 10 through thelowermost layer of airflow passages 46 in vent panels 32 onto the roof12 where it may run off shingles 22.

In the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 6 a and 6 b, wind blownprecipitation may be carried into airflow passages 46 but is preventedfrom proceeding further by filtering fabric 34 and may drain back out.

Referring to FIG. 8, shed roof vent 74 is applied at the top of a shedstyle roof 74 where it abuts an exterior wall 72. Flange panel 78 may bebent downwardly and secured to exterior wall 72 by fasteners oradhesive. Alternately, the flange panel 78 may be bent upwardly andsecured to the wall 72. Flashing 80 may be applied on top of the shedroof vent 74. Vent panels 32 may be nailed or otherwise secured tosheathing 18 through shingles 22. Any wind blown precipitation thatenters the shed roof vent 74 is prevented from entering the spacebeneath the roof by filtering fabric 34. Rain or melted snow thataccumulates on top of filtering fabric 34 drains from the shed roof vent74 through the airflow passages 46 in the bottommost vent panel 32.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the essential attributes thereof; therefore, theillustrated embodiments should be considered in all respects asillustrative and not restrictive, reference being made to the appendedclaims rather than to the foregoing description to indicate the scope ofthe invention.

1. A ridge vent having, comprising: a top panel; a pair of generallyopposed vent portions contacting the top panel and with generallydiscrete airflow passages; and a filtering fabric attached to aninterior surface of the top panel and a bottom surface of each of thevent portions, the filtering fabric substantially blocking entry ofprecipitation into an interior of the vent.
 2. The ridge vent of claim1, in which the filtering fabric comprises a nonwoven material.
 3. Theridge vent of claim 2, in which the nonwoven material is spunbonded. 4.The ridge vent of claim 1, in which the filtering fabric comprisesrandomly arranged fibers.
 5. The ridge vent of claim 1, in which thefiltering fabric comprises a synthetic polymer.
 6. The ridge vent ofclaim 1, in which an airflow exiting a building, on which said ridgevent is installed, contacts said filtering fabric before contacting saidtop panel or before contacting said vent portions.
 7. The ridge vent ofclaim 1, in which the filtering fabric is attached with an adhesive,with a fastener, or be heat fusing.
 8. The ridge vent of claim 1, inwhich the filtering fabric is attached to the top panel and the ventportions with an adhesive.
 9. The ridge vent of claim 1, in combinationwith a building roof, said ridge vent installed on said roof.
 10. A ventallowing an airflow to exit a building having a roof with a ridge whensaid vent is placed over said ridge, the vent comprising: a top panel; apair of vent portions having generally discrete air passages; and afilter contacting the vent portions and positioned to filter the airflowbefore said airflow contacts the vent portions.
 11. A method of making adevice for venting a building, comprising attaching a filter to a bottomsurface of each pair of opposed vent portions, the vent portions havingdiscrete air passages and disposed proximate to a top panel.
 12. Themethod of claim 11, further comprising attaching the filter to aninterior surface of the top panel.
 13. The method of claim 12, in whichthe filter is attached with an adhesive, with a fastener, or by heatfusion.
 14. The method of claim 12, in which the filter is attached withan adhesive.
 15. The method of claim 12, in which the filter is attachedso that the filter forms a tent-like structure when said device isinstalled on a roof of said building.
 16. The method of claim 12, inwhich the attached filter comprises a nonwoven fabric.
 17. The method ofclaim 12, in which the attached filter comprises a nonwoven, spunbondedmaterial.
 18. The method of claim 12, in which the attached filtercomprises a randomly arranged synthetic polymer.
 19. The method of claim12, further comprising forming said device into a roll.
 20. The methodof claim 12, wherein a routed groove is formed in said top panel.